INNER CARRIER SUBSTRATE TRIM COVER ATTACHMENT

• US 20180037148A1
• Filed: 08/05/2016
• Published: 02/08/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Original Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC (Ford Motor Company)
• Inventors: Line, Johnathan Andrew, Hosbach, Christian J., Kondrad, Marcos Silva, Brinker, Rodney Charles, Billardello, Nicholas Alphonse
• Granted Patent: US 10,220,745 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/5825 by hooks, staples, clips, snap fasteners or the like
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/6009 covering more than only the seat
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/64 Back-rests or cushions B60N2/2222 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/646 shape of the cushion
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/682 Joining means
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/7094 Upholstery springs
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/72 Attachment or adjustment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/809 vertically slidable
• CPC Class Codes: B60N 2/897 with sleeves located in the back-rest for guiding the rods of the head-rest

Abstract

A motor vehicle seating assembly for a motor vehicle has upwardly extending seat back assembly comprising a seat back frame, a decorative seat back rear panel module, and a seat back cushion and suspension module attached to the seat back frame. The seat back cushion and suspension module further comprises a one-piece composite inner carrier substrate having a pair of vertically extending side members, an upper transverse member, and a lower transverse member having an outer perimeter. A plurality of attachment openings is disposed about the outer perimeter at discrete locations. A seat back trim cover has an outer perimeter having a plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners disposed about a perimeter of the seat back trim cover at locations corresponding to the discrete locations of the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

Claims

1. A motor vehicle seating assembly for a motor vehicle having a lower seat assembly and an upwardly extending seat back assembly, the upwardly extending seat back assembly comprising;

a seat back frame;

a decorative seat back rear panel module; and

a seat back cushion and suspension module attached to the seat back frame, the seat back cushion and suspension module further comprising a one-piece composite inner carrier substrate having a pair of vertically extending side members, an upper transverse member, and a lower transverse member, wherein an outer edge of each of the side members, upper transverse member, and lower transverse member form an outer perimeter, and a plurality of attachment openings disposed about the outer perimeter at discrete locations, and a seat back trim cover having an outer perimeter having a plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners disposed about a perimeter of the seat back trim cover at locations corresponding to the discrete locations of the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

2. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 1, wherein the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate further comprises a suspension system mounted to and supported by the vertically extending side members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

3. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 1, wherein the seat back trim cover has a plurality of locations about the outer perimeter and the seat back trim cover experiences a different tension at one of the plurality of locations about the outer perimeter of the seat back trim cover when installed and the plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners are provided in a plurality of sizes corresponding to the tension applied to the one of the plurality of locations about the outer perimeter of the seat back trim cover.

4. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 3, wherein the plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners comprise J-retainers and the plurality of attachment openings disposed about the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate comprise a plurality of perimeter trim J-retainer attachment openings molded-in the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate that receives the trim J-retainers and allows the seat back trim cover to be attached at one of the plurality of openings around the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate to maintain the seat back trim cover in a taut condition.

5. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 4, wherein each of the perimeter trim J-retainer attachment openings disposed on the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate is selected from a plurality of opening widths that correspond to a size of one of the plurality of seat back trim attachment fasteners applied to the one of the plurality of locations about the outer perimeter of the seat back trim cover.

6. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 3, wherein each of the plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners comprise a trim J-retainer and each of the plurality of attachment openings about the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate comprise perimeter trim J-retainer attachment openings adapted to receive a trim J-retainer.

7. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 1, wherein the decorative seat back rear panel module comprises a pair of vertically extending, forward facing, and opposed side edges that each include a plurality of vertically aligned molded-in attachment receptacles and the outer edge of each of the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate includes a plurality of vertically aligned molded-in attachment fasteners aligned and corresponding with the attachment receptacles of the decorative seat back rear panel module, wherein the one of the plurality of attachment fasteners of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate are resiliently secured by one of the plurality of the attachment receptacles of the decorative seat back rear panel module when the seat back cushion and suspension module is assembled.

8. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 7, wherein the plurality of attachment openings disposed on the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate alternate with the vertically aligned molded-in attachment fasteners disposed on the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

9. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 1, wherein an inner edge of each of the side members, upper transverse member, and the lower transverse member of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate form an inner perimeter about a central opening of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate, and a suspension system comprises a first set of wires that extend transversely between a second set of wires that extend vertically between an upper portion of the vertically extending members and the lower transverse member of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate, wherein a one each of a pair of transversely extending wires operably connects one each of the second set of wires to each of the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

10. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 1, wherein the seat back cushion and suspension module further comprises a cushion foam layer disposed in juxtaposed relation with and below the seat back trim cover.

11. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 1, wherein a lower portion of the seat back trim cover is attached to the lower transverse member of the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate via a transversely extending integrated comb of trim J-retainers received within a transversely extending and corresponding plurality of attachment openings disposed along a lower portion of the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

12. A seat back assembly comprising a one-piece composite inner carrier substrate having a pair of vertically extending side members, an upper transverse member, and a lower transverse member forming an outer perimeter, a plurality of openings disposed about the outer perimeter, and a trim cover having a plurality of trim cover attachment fasteners disposed about a perimeter thereof at locations corresponding to the openings disposed on the outer perimeter of the inner carrier substrate.

13. The seat back assembly of claim 12, wherein the plurality of trim cover attachment fasteners each comprises a J-retainer and the plurality of openings disposed about the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate each comprises a perimeter trim J-retainer attachment opening molded-in the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate that receives one of the plurality of trim cover attachment fasteners to allow the trim cover to be attached at a plurality of discrete locations around the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate to maintain the trim cover in a taut condition, and wherein the trim cover experiences a different tension at one of the plurality of locations about the outer perimeter of the trim cover when installed and the J-retainers are provided in a plurality of sizes corresponding to the tension applied to the one of the plurality of locations about the outer perimeter of the trim cover.

14. The seat back assembly of claim 13, wherein each of the perimeter trim J-retainer attachment openings disposed on the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate have a plurality of opening widths that correspond to a size of the trim attachment fastener applied to one of the plurality of locations about the outer perimeter of the trim cover.

15. The seat back assembly of claim 12, wherein the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate is disposed within a seat back cushion and suspension module, the seat back cushion and suspension module further comprising a cushion foam layer disposed in juxtaposed relation with and below the trim cover, and the plurality of openings is disposed about an outer edge of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate to attach the trim cover and the cushion foam layer to the seat back cushion and suspension module to enable modular assembly of the seat back cushion and suspension module.

16. The seat back assembly of claim 15, further comprising a decorative seat back rear panel module which comprises a pair of vertically extending, forward facing, and opposed side edges that each include a plurality of vertically aligned molded-in attachment receptacles and the outer edge of each of the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate includes a plurality of vertically aligned molded-in attachment fasteners aligned with an corresponding with the attachment receptacles of the decorative seat back rear panel model, wherein the plurality of attachment fasteners of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate are resiliently secured by the plurality of attachment receptacles of the decorative seat back rear panel module when the vertically extending seat back is assembled.

17. A motor vehicle seating assembly comprising a lower seat assembly and an upwardly extending seat back assembly, the upwardly extending seat back assembly comprising;

a seat back frame;

a seat back cushion and suspension module attached to the seat frame, the seat back cushion and suspension module further comprising a one-piece composite inner carrier substrate having a pair of vertically extending side members, an upper transverse member, and a lower transverse member, wherein an outer edge of each of the side members, upper transverse member, and lower transverse member form an outer perimeter and an inner edge of each of the side members, upper transverse member, and the lower transverse member form an inner perimeter about a central opening, and a plurality of attachment openings disposed about the outer perimeter at a plurality of discrete locations, and a seat back trim cover having an outer perimeter having a plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners disposed about a perimeter of the seat back trim cover at locations corresponding to the discrete locations of the outer perimeter of the inner carrier substrate; and

a decorative seat back rear panel module comprising a pair of vertically extending, forward facing, and opposed side edges that each include a plurality of vertically aligned molded-in attachment receptacles, wherein the outer edge of each of the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate includes a plurality of vertically aligned molded-in attachment fasteners aligned and corresponding with the attachment receptacles of the decorative seat back rear panel module that are received within and are resiliently secured by the plurality of attachment receptacles of the decorative seat back rear panel module when the vertically extending seat back is assembled.

18. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 17, wherein each of the plurality of seat back trim cover attachment fasteners comprises a J-retainer and the plurality of attachment openings disposed about the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate comprise a plurality of perimeter trim J-retainer attachment openings molded-in the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate that each receives one of the plurality of the J-retainers and allows the seat back trim cover to be attached at one of the plurality of discrete locations around the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate to maintain the seat back trim cover in a taut condition.

19. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 18, wherein the perimeter trim J-retainer attachment openings disposed on the vertically extending members of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate alternate with the vertically aligned molded-in attachment fasteners disposed on the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.

20. The motor vehicle seating assembly of claim 17, wherein a lower portion of the seat back trim cover is attached to the lower transverse member of the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate via a transversely extending integrated comb of J-retainers received within a transversely extending and corresponding plurality of attachment openings disposed along the lower portion of the outer perimeter of the one-piece composite inner carrier substrate.